President Dr. Irfaan Ali has hailed Qatar’s economic achievements as a model for Guyana’s own development strategy. Speaking at a reception at the Marriott Hotel to celebrate Qatar’s National Day, President Ali highlighted Qatar’s economic successes as an example for formulating, planning, and executing Guyana’s development objectives.
“We see the lessons learned, we see the diversification, we see the successes as examples that we can apply in our own model for Guyana’s development,” the Head of State said.
President highlighted that December 18th not only marks the unification of Qatar in 1878 but also celebrates over 145 years of exceptional progress.
“Qatar has developed into a center of modernity, innovation, and prosperity in the Middle East and beyond,” President Ali stated.
He credited this success to the vision, determination, and resilience of Qatar’s people and successive generations of leadership.
The celebration on Monday night also provided an opportunity for President Ali to reflect on the flourishing friendship and cooperation between Guyana and Qatar.
“Our two nations despite the geographical distance have been steadily nurturing closer ties founded on mutual respect shared interest and a common vision for prosperity and development.
“Our partnership currently encompasses several key areas of mutual interest including energy, healthcare, infrastructure development defence cooperation, technology and education,” the President highlighted.
Building on this cooperation, the two nations recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding political consultations.
This agreement paved the way for the inaugural consultations between Guyana and Qatar, creating a structured platform for continued dialogue and collaboration across various shared priorities.
President Ali further emphasised that Qatar’s renowned expertise in the energy sector, particularly in natural gas, offers valuable opportunities for knowledge sharing and technical cooperation as Guyana develops its emerging oil and gas industry.
“As Guyana embarks on its transformative journey in the energy sector, we look to Qatar’s development model as an inspiring example,” he said.
He added, “Our nation’s oil discoveries have opened unprecedented opportunities for sustainable economic growth and inclusive social development.”
Guyana like Qatar recognises the importance of leveraging its energy resources responsibly to promote sustainable development, economic diversification and improve quality of life for all its citizens.
President Ali also expressed admiration for Qatar’s strategic management of its resources and investments in critical areas such as healthcare, education, infrastructure, finance, tourism, and sports.
“Guyana looks forward to learning how elements of this approach might be adapted to our unique circumstances as we chart our own course towards a prosperous, sustainable, resilient future for all Guyanese,” he said.
President Ali further noted that the Qatari Investment Authority has been mandated to explore every possibility to partner with Guyana’s local private sector, reflecting the growing opportunities for collaboration and shared development.
“I believe that our partnership can serve as a model for international cooperation, driving progress not only for our nations but for the global community as a whole,” he stated.
The President further called for exploring opportunities for collaboration in climate change mitigation and adaptation.
